I am a forty-year-old woman. When I look at today’s youth or youngsters, I feel that I must have lived in another country or even in another culture in my teenage and early twenties. The way young people approach their life these days comparative the way we did, would make everything in past look very unreal. It is hard to believe that in any country; especially a culture oriented country like India, only in around 15 years, things can change so drastically.

A little unbelievable but true

Mobile phones, internet, variety in career options, approach towards relationships, changed eating and drinking habits, living on credits and choosing everything on the temporary basis. This is the new and modern way of life. It’s a completely contradictory of everything we have believed for many centuries, risky and after thinking about all of this in one go, it gives us Goosebumps.

Digitalisation is a storm. It has uprooted us with a force to be reckoned with and now we are rooting on completely new grounds. Everything is new and we have the opportunity to start fresh. We can blame or give credit for every change in our society to this parallel technical word which is getting bigger and bigger every second or we can just simply ignore it. Either way, it exists and gripping us more deeply day by day, affecting our lives in ways we couldn’t even imagine a few years back.

How is digitalization effecting us?

A small but crucial pointer, life has become mobile. No need to stay in one place your entire life just to stick to a job. You can have a stable job and live a free life at the same time without much hassle. Our new wired world has made it possible. In flesh, any human being can be present only at one place at one time but virtuality opens completely new dimensions for us. We can be present at multiple places at the same time. Not to forget, it is legal, almost free of cost and very easy. Find the best insults here. No need to learn sorcery.

Sitting in an office and work in dim boring office light is unnecessary. You can sit on a beach, feel inspired, get your work done and send it to whomever you want to, without being physically present at the place. How!! Well, we have an “E” for everything. E-money, E-bookings, E- buying, E-selling, E-mailing and E- controlling. There is nothing we cannot do with the help of this E.

How things changed

We can pick some old things and compare them to new ones to get a better picture here.

Approach towards life & knowing your mind

My ten year daughter tells me every time we talk anything related to future (just be it a relative’s wedding which we might or might not attend), that she doesn’t want to become an engineer (must mention here that there are so many engineers in our family I lost count years ago, including my dear husband, in short-her father) and she doesn’t want to go for any job. She would do something on her own which will be related to animals. She is still a little far away from her teenage years but the way she knows her mind is commendable.

In our school and college times, we always wanted to get good marks so we can get a well-paid job in a reputed company. Where have all those gone?

Internet plays a great role in this change. She has access to the internet (nothing to be alarm about. I keep a close eye on her activities. She reads and studies everything she has interest in. On one ordinary day, she realized that she has a lot of interest in animals. International connectivity and encouragement is another trigger.

No hurry No worry

The most fearful question…what will you do if the work you choose doesn’t pay enough or isn’t reputed enough or doesn’t have a bright future?

Simplest answer (by her)..Then I will do something else. There are so many things to choose from. There is nothing to worry and no hurry.

Hmm…Ok.

We can take it easy and still reach in time. Right? Earlier, they used to say the early one starts, the better and bigger one becomes. Nowadays they say, we are not in competition with anyone and no one is our competition. Hope we all make it to finishing line. I don’t know about anyone else but to me, it sounds very close to wisdom.

So, basically, the new mantra is, take your own sweet time in choosing and doing everything. Put your brain as well as your heart to make any choice and don’t fear to regret it.

Devil may care attitude

Since when life has become a paradise. My father used to say, “Jo bindhgaya wo Moti, jo rah gaya wo pathar”.

Literal meaning- “A pearl is nothing but a rock if it is not a part of any neckless.”

Social meaning, “if you are not doing something which has already been declared reputed by our society than you are wasting your life and you are useless. So do something which is acceptable.

Now, coming back to our young generation. First of all, asking about a career’s reputation itself is a waste of time. They don’t answer and if in any graced by the god’s moment (or after getting enough tortured by our continuous hammering) they do reply, the answers will be astonishing.

Who cares what people think. This is our life. As long as we are not a burden to anyone it’s no one’s business what we do in our professional or personal life. As if I am going to kill someone.

At the end, when it becomes unbearable they get rid of all the emotional and social drama by saying, “let us try it for two to three years. If it doesn’t work out we shall do whatever you ask. We promise”. And life goes on.

Temporary is better than Permanent

It is applicable to everything. Be it a professional choice, be it a relationship or be it a living arrangement, everything is temporary or on an experimental basis. First trial and then decide. No hurry.

She started as a software engineer, ended up as a travel and philosophy blog writer.

He started as a business analyst, ended up as a start-up co-founder.

She plans to become a vet.

He started as an HR executive, ended up as a Yoga Instructor.

She had no ambition. Ended up writing.

These people can be anyone. There is one thing common in all of them. They are exploring territories they never ventured before. Who knows this also may not be their final destination. They can again change the path and do something new. Things are temporary.

She met countless guys before she found the right one. Even then, getting married was still out of the question as there is no hurry. And of course, to stay together, commitment comes from the heart and not from the social rituals or standards.

A musical band formed by twelve members of all age and gender traveled the world. They need everything and they need nothing. A house to live but not to own. Furniture to make life comfortable and cozy but no need to buy when furniture is available on rent, cars available on rent, even home appliances are available on rent. Partners on a temporary basis as long as both people in a relationship understand their situation and are happy with it. Nothing permanent. Whenever they find a new path they can leave everything behind without hurting anyone or anything and move on.

The Real Question

Do we have to be in a band to live a free life? No, we all are the musician of our life song, exploring new beats every day as they come our way. We can choose. We can decide. We can hold on and we can let go. Life is too short to experience everything anyway. Why waste time to do things we don’t want to. Just take it easy.

Anyways some very brilliant guys once said,”we don’t own materialistic around us they own us.” Its your call, “Do you want to own or do you want to be owned?”